Todd Gives Disappointing Update on Joker 3

Dreams of a ‘Joker’ trifecta may be fizzling out faster than a whoopee cushion left out in the sun, with director Todd Phillips signaling a goodbye from the franchise. It seems that for Phillips and his sidekick, Joaquin Phoenix, two swings at the Joker’s diabolical mayhem were quite enough, thank you!

Phillips went on record in a recent tête-à-tête with Variety, inquiring about his upcoming ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’, and casually dropped a bomb-shell about the franchise’s future. Well, less of a bomb-shell and more of a softly fizzing firecracker: Phillips noted apparently there’re no plans for a ‘Joker 3’ on the horizon.

Hanging Up the Joker’s Makeup

“Toyed around in this hodge-podge enough for two movies, but think we’ve belted out our tune in this sphere,” Phillips rather cryptically noted. Despite not outrightly eliminating the chances of the third film, his cavalier consideration certainly hinted a sign-off from him and Phoenix from the character.

Don’t leave the vigilante mask on the hook just yet though. With James Gunn already flexing his directorial muscles to build his own Batman empire and Matt Reeves’ ‘The Batman’ universe still in expansion mode, it’s safe to say that you won’t go Batman-less.

Phillips’ Comedy Antics Turned Melancholy Drama

Under Phillips’ helm, ‘Joker: Folie á Deux’ ushered a new era in comic book storytelling. Renowned for his slaps and guffaws-filled filmography, including hits like 2004’s ‘Starsky & Hutch’, and the epic hangover trilogy, 2019’s Joker was a full-blown melancholic drama.

Released in October 2019, the hard-hitting tragedy-farce struck gold for Warner Bros. Pictures, raking in a whopping approximately $1.079 billion worldwide. In return for a measly estimated $55 million budget, they earned themselves an Oscar and more than a few sleepless nights of cinematic ecstasy.

From Stand-Alone to Two of a kind

Despite ‘Joker’ originally marketed as a stand-alone film, one was never enough for good ol’ Joker, was it? Come June 2022, Phillips surprised fans with a sequel. ‘Joker: Folie á Deux’, however, invites us to a parallel continuity, separate from James Gunn and Peter Safran’s yet-to-be-unveiled DC Universe.

Penned by Phillips and Scott Silver, who also paired up for the original film, it’s evidently clear that the sinister sequel is a Joker’s hand-me-down giggle box laughing its way to a stand-alone life.